The Farmers Mart Aug/Sep 2015 - Issue 41 | Page 33

Arable

Get to grips with pest control
1env Solutions has the answer
»»Problems with pests
are a constant cause for
concern for those in the farming
industry.
• Rats and mice have been
known to cause great
damage to farm buildings
and equipment. As well
as transmitting diseases,
rodents also pose a fire
hazard owing to their
ability to gnaw electrical
wiring and cables.
• Flying insects can
contaminate food stocks
and pose a serious health
threat to livestock as well
as being a nuisance
• Stored Product Insects
(SPIs), such as beetles
and weevils, can infest
grain and commodities,
resulting in the rejection of
grain products and loss of
revenue.
Rodents can transmit
diseases to humans and
livestock such as Leptospirosis
(Weil´s diseases), Murine
Typhus and Hantavirus. They
can also spread harmful
organisms such as Salmonella
bacteria, viruses and parasitic
worms. As well as this, rodents
are a major hazard to farm
animals, especially pigs, cattle
and poultry and are thought
to be carriers of Foot & Mouth
disease.
A serious threat usually
occurs when rodent
populations build up in food
and feedstuff stores. Rodents
not only eat and damage
significant amounts of the
stored food but their urine and
faeces also contaminate stored
produce.
Flying insects, including
lesser house flies and blow
flies, are a real nuisance for

both livestock and people
causing stress and irritation.
Each female fly can lay up to
500 eggs in several batches of
about 75 to 150 eggs, during
a three to four day period. In
general, the adult female will
lay eggs on a suitable surface
for larval development; typically
damp, decomposing organic
materials.
The duration of the cycle
is very dependent on the
temperature of the larval
environment, at 35°C the
complete lifecycle from egg to
adult will be completed in six
days. It is estimated that in one
season alone, one pair of flies
can be responsible for up to
190,000,000 billion flies.
More than 90% of farm grain
stores harbour at least one
insect species known to infest
grain, but the most vulnerable
are the mixed farms where
animal feedstuffs are often
introduced already infested by
stored product insects.
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